26 January 2009

Respected conservative commentator George Will sounds the alarm on runaway federal spending that is certain to bankrupt the country. From Real Clear Politics:

If he does tackle the problem of the teetering entitlement system, he will do so at an unpropitious moment: Events are making reform more necessary while making it seem less urgent. A nation in which $350 billion was but the first half of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, and in which TARP is distinct from the perhaps $850 billion "stimulus" program, is a nation being taught not to take seriously sums with merely nine digits and two commas.

It's easy to fall into the line of thinking that because the federal government spent billions and billions on Wall Street banks, then they might as well spend money on everything from the auto companies to free college education. Hell, all democracy in America is about is voting blocs trying to get themselves chunks of government largess. Not many people are really taking the time to ask how all this shit is going to be paid for. I'm glad at least one respected guy is.

Here is the thing though, entitlements are called entitlements for a reason. I earned my retirement-as will you (my ex on the other hand..........did not). So what is the government going to do-stop paying me money I earned?

Same with Social Security, I've paid in enough money that I deserve to get money out when the time comes. I've earned it and they better damn well pay it. Same goes with my Tricare entitlement. It was all part of the contract.

So when I hear someone talking about "fixing" money I've earned-I have only one response: "f##k you-pay me".

I've got a better idea, balance the budget which will mean that tax cuts don't become holy writ. The government needs to balance its budget-stop robbing from Social Security.

Furthermore, there is lots of money still out there for the government to go after. One of the most disturbing statistics I have seen is the rise of the incomes of the top 1% vs the rest of us. Our incomes remain virtually stagnant while their percentage has jumped to obscene levels.

Even George Will is in THAT category. When he has to start sweating money like I do-and giving away a piece of money he earned to a worthless whore-then he will have a right to complain.

Retirement from the military is different from social security. Retirment is part of the contract with the government (we owe you since you served 20+), but social security is just a gigantic ponzi scheme so that the citizens don't get to riled up and try to shake up the system too bad. It didn't start out that way, but it's certainly become that.

Who is This Clown?

Nixon is a former Navy guy who did a couple of deployments at sea and spent a year in Iraq. He enjoys reading and writing about the strange intersection between war, politics, and the media. He enjoys being an ex-pat and NGO employee in Bangkok for the time being.